


o christmas tree.

by pyroallerdyce



Series: i have an obsession with fire and ice (aka all my john/bobby fics) [56]
Category: X-Men (Movieverse)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate Universe -Modern Setting, Boys Kissing, Christmas, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Lights, Christmas Tree, December writing challenge, Established Relationship, Gay Character, Gay Male Character, Inspired by Music, Kissing, M/M, Prompt Fic, Prompt Fill, Relationship(s), Short One Shot, Tumblr Prompt, Wordcount: 1.000-3.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:55:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27972689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pyroallerdyce/pseuds/pyroallerdyce
Summary: John Allerdyce had never decorated a Christmas tree before.  He’d bounced around from foster home to foster home as a child, and his foster parents had either been Jewish and therefore didn’t have a Christmas tree to decorate, or they had not included him in the decorating process because he wasn’t a real member of the family.  He’d seen decorated trees, but he’d never seen the process of decorating a tree before.  He didn’t think it could be that hard, but he had no desire to decorate a tree on his own.  He didn’t even want to decorate his apartment.  What was the point when it was just him?or:  Bobby is teaching John how to decorate a Christmas tree, but John keeps breaking things.
Relationships: John Allerdyce/Bobby Drake
Series: i have an obsession with fire and ice (aka all my john/bobby fics) [56]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1202506
Kudos: 7
Collections: December Writing Challenge - 2020





	o christmas tree.

**Author's Note:**

> December writing challenge day 9. These X-Men ones are kicking my ass. I don't know if they're any good at all. But here they are.
> 
> and as always, if you like what you read, and you want to see more, please let me know via a comment or kudos or bookmark so that I know I'm not writing into a void. enjoy!
> 
> December 9 Prompt - “My mom got me that ornament! Stop breaking them!” “It’s not like I’m trying to break them.” (J/B) (writersblockbecomesunblocked on Tumblr)  
> Title: O Christmas Tree

John Allerdyce had never decorated a Christmas tree before. He’d bounced around from foster home to foster home as a child, and his foster parents had either been Jewish and therefore didn’t have a Christmas tree to decorate, or they had not included him in the decorating process because he wasn’t a real member of the family. He’d seen decorated trees, but he’d never seen the process of decorating a tree before. He didn’t think it could be that hard, but he had no desire to decorate a tree on his own. He didn’t even want to decorate his apartment. What was the point when it was just him?

Still, he felt like maybe someday someone would come along that would make him want to decorate. He did walk through the Christmas section of the store every time he was there, taking in what kinds of ornaments existed and getting an idea in his head of what he might want on a tree of his own. He could picture a room with a tree and a bunch of presents underneath it, kids running around wanting to open them even though it was only Christmas Eve. He knew the person to live that life with was out there somewhere and that he’d find them someday.

And then he met Bobby.

Bobby Drake had spent his whole life decorating Christmas trees. He remembered being a small child and his father lifting him up so he could put ornaments towards the top, and how when he was old enough, he was trusted to climb the small ladder to put the angel on the top. His mother’s side of the family had a tradition that stretched back generations of giving ornaments to each other on Christmas Eve, so when Bobby moved out on his own, he had a whole box full of ornaments for a Christmas tree of his own. Decorating the Christmas tree was one of his favorite parts of the holiday season.

But when Bobby told his parents he was gay, they hadn’t reacted well, and it had been nearly four years since he’d last spoken to them because of it. Decorating the Christmas tree wasn’t as fun anymore because it reminded him of them. The ornaments reminded him of them too. But he couldn’t bring himself to buy new ones, or to give up decorating a tree. It made him remember that once upon a time, someone loved him, and it gave him hope that maybe someday someone would love him again.

And then he met John. 

The first holiday season that they spent together, Bobby mentioned that he liked to decorate during the first week of December and John enthusiastically said he was looking forward to helping. Bobby couldn’t believe that John had never decorated for Christmas before and he vowed to make it the best experience that he could for John. Besides, decorating wasn’t that difficult and it was a lot of fun. 

But John had never decorated anything before and it showed. And when the fourth ornament crashed to the floor and broke, Bobby lost his cool.

“My mom got me that ornament! Stop breaking them!” 

“It’s not like I’m trying to break them.” John reached for the broom and began to clean up again. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“Well, it’s really simple. You put the hook over the branch and then it hangs there.”

“Hook?” 

Bobby stopped what he was doing and turned around at that. “You’re not using the ornament hooks?”

“Apparently not,” John said, looking around. “Where are the hooks?”

“For fuck’s sake,” Bobby said, shaking his head. “How about you just work on untangling the lights? That you can do without breaking things.”

“Fuck off,” John said, but he had a smile on his face. “Where are the lights?”

Bobby pointed towards a box and John went over to it, pulling a ball of tangled up lights out of it. “How many strings of lights are in this?”

“I don’t know, five or six probably,” Bobby said, grabbing the package of ornament hooks and turning his attention to the box in front of him. “It won’t be that difficult to untangle.”

They fell silent after that, Bobby singing along with the Christmas music as he worked on putting the ornaments on the tree, John muttering to himself while working on the lights. When Bobby was done, he turned towards John to get the lights and he burst out laughing at the sight. “What the fuck are you doing?”

John had the lights wrapped around his waist and legs, twisting around his arms up to circle his neck, and he looked up, confused. “I’m straightening out the lights.”

“Getting them tangled up again is more like it,” Bobby said, walking over to him. “You look like a human Christmas tree right now.”

John sighed. “I’m trying my best.”

“I know, and I appreciate it,” Bobby said, reaching out to take the lights that were in his hand. “So let’s get these untangled so we can put them on the tree.”

John nodded and Bobby began to work on them, slowly working them off of John’s body so they could stretch across the floor. Once John was free of them, Bobby pulled him into his arms and kissed him softly. “Thank you for doing this with me.”

“Next year will be better, I promise.”

Bobby grinned at the thought of still being together with John next Christmas. “Yeah, but things can still get better this year. Come on, I’ll teach you how to put the lights onto the tree.”

John nodded and Bobby grabbed a string of lights, and together they worked on putting the lights up. Once they were on the tree, they turned off the house lights and plugged in the tree. Sitting down on the sofa, John leaned into Bobby’s side and Bobby wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Bobby,” John whispered. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For giving me this. I’ve never had this before.”

Bobby smiled and pulled John into a kiss. “I’d give you the world if I could.”

“I’d give you the world too,” John replied, kissing him again.

Bobby grinned at him. “Wanna make out?”

John laughed before nodding. “Yeah.”

As they started to kiss again, John couldn’t help but think about how this Christmas was already the best Christmas of his life, and Bobby couldn’t help but think about how Christmases with John was something he was prepared to enjoy for a very long time.


End file.
